Here is the article:

Solana: Sending transactions is rarely confirmed

One of the most unpleasant moments for a Solana user is waiting for a transaction to be confirmed. While it may seem insignificant, our recent experience sending transactions on the Solana network has shown how rare such confirmations are.

My transactions are confirmed rarely, sometimes only once a day, even though I use the paid starter plan of QuickNode, one of the most popular and reliable Solana node providers. This is not an isolated incident. Many users have reported similar cases where their transactions were not confirmed despite following the standard recommendations.

Although I reported this issue to QuickNode, I have not received a response. I regret to say that my problem may not be an isolated one and shows that the Solana team needs to pay more attention to the issue of transaction confirmation times.

Problem:

To understand why transactions are rarely confirmed, let’s look at how the Solana network works. The Solana network is designed to process transactions in batches of 32, which is called “batching.” This means that multiple transactions can be processed at the same time, reducing the overall transaction processing time.

However, batch processing does not guarantee faster transaction confirmations. In fact, transactions can be batched together but still fail to be confirmed for various reasons, such as:

• High network load: If too many transactions are processed at the same time, they may get lost in the queue.

• Node congestion: Some nodes on the Solana network may experience high load, which can result in delays in processing and confirming transactions.

• Network issues: Issues with the network itself can cause delays or failures in transactions.

Solution:

To mitigate these issues, QuickNode offers a paid starter plan that includes faster transaction confirmation times. However, even after this update, we still experienced slow confirmations. It is clear that there are limits to the speed at which transactions can be confirmed on the Solana network.

Call to Action:

Given the frustration and potential financial loss caused by transaction delays, it is important that the Solana team address these issues head on. This could include:

• Increasing node throughput to handle high transaction volumes

• Implementing more efficient batch processing algorithms to reduce latency

• Increasing batch processing frequency to minimize congestion

• Strengthening network security measures to prevent hacking and other malicious activity

Until these changes are implemented, users will continue to experience slow transaction confirmations. As a result, we may need to consider alternative solutions to ensure our transactions are processed efficiently and quickly.

By taking action to reduce transaction confirmation times on the Solana network, we hope to put an end to this annoying issue and provide all Solana users with a smoother experience.